Another Cubadisco has come and gone and the big winners in the categories of greatest interest to Timba fans were Juan Formell & Los Van Van and  Alexander Abreu & Havana D'Primera. The list of nominees was impressive. In addition to Van Van and Havana D'Primera were La Charanga Habanera for "No mires la carátula", Arnaldo y su Talismán for "Mango" and Sixto Llorentes' debut solo album "Lo que sucede conviene"  Son del Indio. Still, I knew Van Van would win. The smooth production of "Arrasando" was bound to catch the judges' ears.  Indeed "Arrasando"  also won for Best Recording.

The Traditional Music category was won by Pancho Amat y su Cabildo del Son for "Yo traigo un son", also a double-winner taking the Anthology category.

Closest to my own heart is the winner of the Ópera Prima category (first work). Havana D'Primera's "Haciendo Historia" was my personal favorite from 2009 so I am happy that the judges saw fit to award Los Primeros with the Best First Work award. The band has taken Havana and now the world by storm with their combination of poetic lyrics and serious timba. And on stage there is no harder working singer than Alexander Abreu who gives everything at each performance as if it were his last.

In honor of their award, Patrick Bonnard has shared a few of his pictures from the "Haciendo Historia" tour 2009/2010. Click here or on the picture below to see more.  The complete gallery is at Patrick's website .

Alexander Abreu & Havana D'Primera - winners Ópera Prima Cubadisco 2010
Photo ©Patrick Bonnard used by permission

Congratulations to all the Cubadisco winners and hasta la próxima .

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There is said to be a time for all things under Heaven and in Miami it is "A Time for Love". Artemiseño Arturo Sandoval was a founding member of Irakere, the group that originally brought us the concept of the bomba gear. After moving to the US he has played mainly classical music and jazz where he has excelled and been awarded 4 Grammys and 6 Billboard awards.

Arguably the best trumpet player in the world, he may primarily be known to laymen for his ability to hit impossibly high notes, but this is just the icing on the cake. Sandoval coaxes the richest tones from both his trumpet and flugelhorn. His playing covers a full emotional range from delicate and sensitive to frenzied passion.

The new album "A Time for Love" was released on May 11th and can be ordered from Amazon. I have only heard one song so far but the album is described as follows: "The album features classical compositions for orchestra and jazz trio by Grammy-winning arranger Jorge Calandrelli along with a sprinkling of American jazz standards by composers including Gershwin and Chaplin.  Also featured on the album are Chris Botti, Monica Mancini, Shelly Berg, and Kenny Barron. "

Here is a sample you can listen to and enjoy yourselves: Paven pour une infante defunte . It features guest artist trumpeter Chris Botti.

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I know it has been more than 1 month since the concert and I have to apologize for my tardiness, but better late than never. I have finally posted my report from the Havana D'Primera concert in Stockholm March 25th. As could be expected the concert hall was full with a  mix of world music fans, timberos and salseros. There were representatives from all the local timba bands as well as dancers such as Chiqui Dixon. I met three Colombians who were visiting from Rome and came to the concert as well as a woman from Puerto Rico. I suspect she didn't come all the way to Sweden just to see Havana D'Primera, but you never know...Click here to read the report including 3 video clips from the concert.

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Photo courtsey of Cristian Muñoz

Great news from, Miami. Manolito y Su Trabuco have arrived in the US. With all the changes to the concert schedule I only know of 3 concerts. The first two are May 7 & 8 in LA and San Francisco, respectively and the third is May 14 in Miami. I hope they set up a few more because the people of the United States have a right to More Trabuco! If you know about any concert that is missing from out list please send me an e-mail.

Update: Make that 4 concerts. I found one for May 20th at SOBs. But according to Mirco's information at TimbaPorSiempre, Manolito said that they will be playing in 14 states, so we must be missing a lot of dates!

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